1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to the communications field, and in particular to an interaction of an electronic reading device with an address pattern.
2. Description of Related Art
Numerous devices exist for accepting user input and controlling user interaction with desktop and portable computers, personal digital assistance (PDAs), mobile phones, and other types of electronic devices. For example, a keyboard can be used to accept typed input and other types of commands, a mouse or a track-ball can be used to provide relative motion input as well as various types of point-and-click selections, a keypad can be used to provide input of numerical data and functional commands, navigational keys can be used for scrolling lists or otherwise repositioning a cursor, and various types of touchpads or touchscreens can be used to provide absolute positional coordinate inputs. Each type of mechanism for accepting input and for supporting user interaction has benefits and disadvantages in terms of size, convenience, flexibility, responsiveness, and easy of use. Generally, the selection of a particular type of input mechanism is dependent upon the function of the application and the degree and type of interaction required.
With the ever expanding capabilities and availability of applications both on the Internet and the area of wireless technology, there continues to be a need to develop and provide new mechanisms for accepting input and interacting with users. In particular, some of the existing technologies suffer from drawbacks or limitations, such as size and flexibility, that make them impractical and/or inconvenient to use in some situations. By expanding the range of mechanisms for supporting user interaction, application developers and end-users can have greater flexibility in the selection of input devices. Preferably, any such new mechanisms will provide increased flexibility and will maximize user convenience. In addition, the development of new mechanisms for interacting with users can expand the realm of potential applications.
For example, while a keyboard typically provides a great deal of flexibility, particularly when it is used in connection with a mouse, a touchscreen, or other navigational device, its size makes it inconvenient in many cases, especially in the wireless context.
The present invention comprises a method and system for controlling electronic utility devices. The method and system utilize an electronic reading device that includes a sensor for detecting portions of an address pattern on a specially formatted surface. In particular, the surface is formatted for use in controlling a specific electronic utility device and includes an address pattern from which a position on the address pattern can be determined by detecting a small portion of the address pattern. Thus, using the portion of the address pattern detected by the electronic reading device, a position or positions of the electronic reading device relative to the address pattern can be determined. The position or positions can then be converted into a control message, which is sent to a server associated with the specific electronic utility device for use in controlling, accessing, or operating the utility device.
Preferably, instructions for translating detected positions into control messages are downloaded to a processor or wireless application protocol (WAP) browser. In performing the translation, the processor or WAP browser identifies a uniform resource locator (URL) associated with the detected portion of the address pattern and generates common gateway interface (CGI) calls that correspond to information entered, selected, or written with the electronic reading device. Once the processor or WAP browser performs this translation, the control message, which contains the CGI calls, is sent via a Bluetooth(trademark) radio interface to a WAP server at the identified URL. The WAP server then directs the specific electronic utility device to perform the requested functions specified in the control message.
In one embodiment of the invention, the processor or WAP browser is contained within the electronic reading device. In an alternative embodiment, the processor or WAP browser is contained in a separate electronic device, such as a mobile station. In either case, communications between the electronic reading device, the separate electronic device, and the WAP server are preferably conducted via a Bluetooth(trademark) radio interface.